Rayman Arena

Share.

New name, same game. Impressions of the neckless-wonder inside.

By IGN Staff

To start out, I guess we should explain the name change. When we saw the next iteration of Rayman at E3, it was known as Rayman M. Now Ubi Soft has decided to name the game Rayman Arena for the game's US release so people don't confuse it for a "M" rated or Mature version of Rayman (so, don't expect cute little Rayman to get drunk and piss on fires or fart a lot like that dirty little Nintendo squirrel). The base of the game will still be the same as Rayman Arena can be best thought of as a multiplayer version classic Rayman.

As we've known, the game will have eight playable characters -- Rayman, Globox, Teensies, Tily, Henchman, New Henchman, Razorbeard, and Razorbeard Wife -- and a grand total of 29 tracks, 16 of which are race tracks and 13 of which of are arena levels. The biggest difference between these levels and those in the classic 3D Rayman are that these have been completely designed to be somewhat linear so that the gameplay tends to be a little more straightforward so that the play style is a bit more fast paced and the skill, at least in the race levels, is based on figuring out how best to get across the obstacles as quickly as possible.

There will be a lot multiple paths, with the paths giving greater risks being faster and the easier paths being a bit slower. From what we've been able to play of the race levels, the pace is nice and quick and there's a lot of skill involved in getting through them quickly. You really have to learn Rayman's skills (which all the eight different characters have) to make it through the levels, as each level is designed so that you must use his different swinging, jumping and power-up abilities in order to make it through them.

The levels are also set up so the more risk you take, the faster you can go through a level. For example, you might opt to go for a more dangerous route with spinning axes and deep gorges to make up some time if you're behind.

The control in both the arena and race modes are exactly the same as the classic Rayman games, but everything's a bit more on tracks so you don't have as much freedom of movement. You can easily do jumps, glide, shoot things, flip, swing on rings, strafe, and just about everything else you could do in previous Rayman games, plus some new stuff like boosts.

And as we've come to expect from the series, the environments are vibrantly colored and highly detailed. The overall graphical look is on par, if not even better, than Rayman 2.

While the console versions won't support multiplayer, up to four people can play over the Internet on the PC, or you can go for a 2-player split screen on one computer.

The game's definitely looking quite good and could prove to be a must-have title for fans of the our fearless and limbless little hero, with the only question being whether or not it'll have enough long term play value. We'll let you know how this part turns out as we get to play it more leading up to the game's Christmas 2001 release date.

-- Dave Zdyrko

June 11, 2001

Just before this year's E3 show, Ubi Soft surprised a few people (including Ubi Soft US) by confirming a long-rumored installment in the Rayman series. The thing is, the biggest surprise was that it was not Rayman 3, but rather a multi-player title known as Rayman M. At E3 Ray and friends finally came stepping out, and since we love our limbless buddy, we had to get a better look at what he was up to. Now, we know what you're thinking: Ubi is out to milk poor Rayman dryer than a new mother who's baby is fresh off a hunger strike, but sit back, open your eyes, and let us educate you on the finer points of the M. This curious little letter just so happens to stand for multi-player, and Ubi is rolling up their creative sleeves in an effort to make sure that this game is much more than a mere cash-run. That's right boys and girls, Rayman is making his online debut, allowing up to four players go at it. After checking out their last experiment with 4-way Ray in the Dreamcast version, our only response, if we spoke Raymanish, we'd say something like Yabazabahurrayman!".

The game will offer up two main modes, racing and shooter, but before jumping into what the game modes are like let's talk about the graphics for a bit. Based off the Rayman 2 engine that wowed your eyes in the past, this game raises the bar just another notch. With more refined graphics, our boy Ray comes out looking better than ever. You'll be able to choose between several different characters from the Rayman universe, and each has their own set of strengths and weaknesses. We got to test drive the PS2 version at E3, and from what we have seen, they've removed the real-time shadows and replaced them with circle style ones similar to those in the Dreamcast version undoubtedly to help keep the framerate cooking when you've got a lot happening on-screen.

Speaking of which, our favorite section of the playable demo from the show floor had to be the game's racing mode. This pits players against one another in all out foot race in the type of crazy worlds you have come to expect from Rayman titles. But before you think this is just some sort of re-hashed Ray, we should tell you this isn't just a sprint through old levels. Oh, no. Everything has been designed from the ground up, and you'll have to put every aspect of your platforming skills to the test to make it to the top of the heap. Maps consist of short cuts, alternate paths, tricks and traps that you may utilize to slow your opponents.

You can swing on Lum Loops, climb up fences, and even shoot Lums at special levers to change the lay of the land. Depending on how you interact with the level and what route you choose, the experience can be different every time! This is a much more mobile approach to racing, and much like Eidos' Mad Dash, gives you choices instead of boundaries, feet instead of wheels, fun instead of monotony. While what we saw was still early, you can expect to see plenty of obstacles to jump, slide, and helicopter past, and the last one there is a rotten egg.

For those who like some head to head confrontation, you'll love the Shooter Mode. The objective is simple: grab as many Lums as you can carry. And how do you get Lums? Shoot your enemies and make them drop them, of course. Even though you use only Rayman's normal attack to weasel away Lums, the map design more than compensates making this simple deathmatch mode gads of fun. Along with a greatly improved camera and simple controls, the multi-leveled maps add to the gaming experience and Ubi hopes they will be enough to give younger gamers a comparable experience to most modern day FPS titles. To that end, this mode also features power-ups, traps and special projectiles to make your Lum hunting more fun. Go one on one with a friend split screen for a intense duel or jump online taking on three other players in a mad free for all shoot out Rayman-style.

Just to keep things interesting, both modes start with three of twelve maps unlocked more being opened when the first three are finished. Beat the first three maps, get the second three, beat those... well you get the idea. Every time a player wins prize money is awarded which can be used to unlock all sorts of features, such as bonus levels, bonus modes, new characters and new skins. With all this for players to unlock this game is sure to keep you playing for a long time online or off.

Though our time with the game at E3 was short, we came away with the distinct impression that Ubi Soft has really kept their eye on the prize with this one. Instead of spitting up an old adventure in a new package, they're focusing on making the game as fun as possible pulling gameplay elements from games like racers like Mad Dash and shooting action from deathmatch games like 007 or Quake, all the while keeping that Rayman feel that gamers know and love. For now, take a little look at the shots below taken from the PS2 version of the game to get an idea of what you can look forward to. We'll get you some PC shots to look at very soon.